Bird Alert!

May 9, 9:30AM. The phone rings. It's a bird alert! One of our local birding friends has spotted a Sora near Lake Estes.

We finish our breakfast, get dressed and rush over in time to see this unusual little rail foraging around some reeds. He is unmistakable coming or going, with his black mask above a bright yellow bill on one end, and a stubby tail, often upturned revealing white underparts at the other.

Sora
Another birding friend received the Alert and joins us. She notices some smaller birds that otherwise might have eluded our attention. Perhaps it is a Palm Warbler, quite uncommon here. Curiosity piqued, we follow her as she approaches the bushes where the bird has landed.

Palm Warbler
What a pretty little bird the Palm Warbler is, with his red cap and yellow trim! We notice yet another warbler, too, flitting around the bushes in what we are learning is the typical warbler style. The Orange-crowned Warbler looks much more plain and his crown is very hard to see.

Orange-crested Warbler
It was a good morning of birding, and we added three new birds to our life list!

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